Vaneese Thomas comes from Memphis blues  and soul royalty, being the daughter of Rufus Thomas (of "Walkin' The Dog fame and the sister of Carla Thomas. While she may not be as famous in the music biz as other family members, Ms. Thomas shows on her latest album, Fight The Good Fight (Blue Heart Records), that she's a fantastic singer with a dynamic personality. She's backed by a strong group of musicians on the dozen cuts here, with nary a lsong that's less than outstanding . Thomas wrote or co-wrote every number, co-producing the album with her life partner, Wayne Warnecke.

One of the better cuts, "Raise The Alarm," kicks it off as a wake-up call for all of us to get our acts together and stop this decline in society. There's a gale wind force in Thomas' voice that gets and keeps our attention. Equally powerful is "Same Blood Same Bone," with Thomas putting a little bit of gospel into a tribute to her hometown of Memphis, crediting the ancestors who laid the foundation for the soul and blues that was born in the city. She sings, "...one heart, one voice, one song ...," and it's among her best vocals on the album.

Peter Calo's banjo intro on "Rosalee" gives this number an old timey feel but with gospel overtones, followed by a mid-tempo shuffle, "I'm Moving On," with Thomas playing piano while Scott Sharrard lays down impressive slide guitar licks. This is another example of the power in Thomas' voice. The tempo slows on the ballad, "Time To Go Home," highlighted by accordion from Joe Mennonna and mandolin from Al Orto. Those solos add to the emotional feel of this song, but it's the pleading voice of Ms. Thomas that really brings it home.

Sharrard's slide work is the highlight of "When I've Had A Few," before Thomas tears it up on vocals on the mid-tempo blues shuffle, "Bad Man," singing about a past love gone bad. We get plenty of good blues guitar from Sharrard and harmonica accompaniment from Corrin Huddleston on "Bad Man." The power of Thomas' voice carries the acoustic number, "Blue," with understated accompaniment; it's simple yet with a complex message. The next number, "'Til I See You Again," has a fuller sound and plenty of horns. Thomas packs plenty of emotion into her voice as she sings about how she wants to get that relationship back again.

Thomas gets happier on "He's A Winner," backed by acoustic slide guitar from Paul Guzzone, a background chorus, and Huddleston's tasty harmonica work. This one is a big production, and it works, and later in the song she sings about her heroes Chadwick Boseman and Jim Brown. Katie Jacoby's fiddle accompaniment gives "Fight The Good Fight," another song of encouragement from Thomas.

Closing the album is "Lost In The Wilderness,"coming straight from the church, with Thomas playing piano. Sharrard's slide guitar work and a robust gospel chorus add more texture to this wonderful song. Thomas' voice gets stronger as the song goes on before the choir brings it all home. An inspirational ending to one of the best albums we'll hear this year!

I just can't say enough good things about Fight The Good Fight. It's a contender for blues album of the year.

--- Bill Mitchell